Dr. J. Carlton Allen preached devotion to God and family

1of2Dr. J. Carlton Allen and his wife, Alice Marie Allen, were viewed as a “young, vibrant couple,” a church member recalled, when Allen became pastor of New Mount Pleasant Baptist Church in 1967.Photo: /Courtesy photo

2of2The Rev. J. Carlton Allen as a young preacher. He served as pastor of New Mount Pleasant Baptist Church for 48 years.Photo: /Courtesy photo

Dr. J. Carlton Allen became a Baptist preacher at 16, and it was a calling he never abandoned. Allen, who served as pastor of New Mount Pleasant Baptist Church for 48 years, died Sunday. He was 71.

“He wanted everyone to have a personal relationship with God, and he really preached family,” said his youngest son, the Rev. Joel C. Allen, who will succeed his father as pastor of the church. “He always was a major encourager of people.”

To those who felt they were unredeemable souls, his message was that with God’s help, they could led a productive life, his son said.

“He was known across the nation as a great preacher,” said his grandson, the Rev. Renard Allen of Phoenix. “In the black preaching tradition, when you’re labeled a great preacher, you’re equivalent to a five-star general.”

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One of his sayings to his flock was “not to let people out-kind you,” his grandson said.

Allen held leadership roles in the National Baptist Convention of America and in the Baptist Ministers Union of San Antonio. He also served as chairman of the city’s Martin Luther King Jr. Commission and MLK March at least twice, relatives said.

The Rev. Dr. Charles E. Booth, senior pastor at Mount Olivet Baptist Church in Columbus, Ohio, said Allen invited him to San Antonio about 15 years ago for a citywide revival.

“I had heard of him before I came to San Antonio,” Booth said. “We developed a very close relationship. When you were around him, you could always bank on two things: He always had something wise to say, and he was always one to encourage pastors and people.”

“He was assertive without being boisterous or loud,” Booth said. “When he talked, people listened.”

Irene H. Brackett and her family had just moved to San Antonio and were present at Allen’s church when he delivered his first sermon, in January 1967. She recalled that there was a palpable sense of excitement that morning. “There was a special energy,” she said.

Brackett went on to serve in a number of leadership roles in the church, and she found Allen to be “gifted.” He was a great communicator and listener.

“When you had a problem, you could go to him,” Brackett said. “But he wasn’t too preachy. He didn’t talk down to people.”

The Rev. Jerry W. Dailey, pastor at Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church, said Allen “was a preacher’s preacher” who always welcomed the newest pastor to the city.

Dailey said Allen and his wife, Alice Marie, always were welcoming hosts. “To go to their home was an event,” Dailey said. “He was a storyteller and could tell more jokes than you can imagine.”

Allen loved food and was a good cook. “It was home-style cooking made fancy,” Dailey said. “He always served more than one entrée, and the meal was always finished with Blue Bell ice cream.”

Former Mayor Henry Cisneros often attended Allen’s church, especially when he served as a city councilman and as mayor. He admired Allen’s “extraordinary preaching skills and management of the church.

“He had great respect from the elders of the African-American church, like my friend the Rev. Claude Black.” Black was thought of as the conscience of the church community, and after he died, “Rev. Allen grew into that role,” Cisneros said.